Wout Van Aert powers to his fourth stage win to clinch the Tour of Britain overall on the Aberdeen seafront, Jacob Scott wins the KoM and Sprints jerseys and Ethan Hayter the Points jersey
Tour of Britain: Stage 8
Wout van Aert was crowned the 2021 AJ Bell Tour of Britain champion on the seafront of Aberdeen on Sunday after he sprinted to win the final stage in Aberdeen and nicking the Tour crown from Ethan Hayter on the last throw of the bike.
Photo: Dean Reeve
The Team Jumbo – Visma rider’s victory meant that he claimed the 10 bonus seconds available on the line and, with INEOS Greandiers’ overnight race leader Ethan Hayter placing outside the top 10, van Aert was able to turn a four-second deficit on the young Briton into a six-second advantage. Reigning world champion Julian Alaphilippe (Deceuninck – Quick-Step) completed the final podium.
Van Aert’s debut appearance in the AJ Bell Tour of Britain was history-making: his tally of four stage victories is the joint-most in the modern incarnation of the race. He also became only the sixth rider to have won stages in England, Scotland and Wales, but the first to do so in a single edition. “It was a really fast finish,” said van Aert. “It was definitely important to have the right position because you couldn’t make up too many places in the final kilometres. I needed all of my guys to close the gap to the breakaway today – I had to do the sprint on my own but after their impressive work, it was a pleasure to finish it off.”
“George [Bennett] and the guys are used to pulling on a flat stage like this, but it was really impressive to see their commitment to close that breakaway down, because they were really strong in the end. You never win alone so it was definitely a big team performance. I definitely won a lot more than I expected to at this race. I hoped to be there on a few stages, as well as seeing from there what was possible on GC, but taking all these wins is beyond my expectations. We’ve had a really nice week and I think my form is where I want it to be.”
“It was really nice to see and really cool for me to explore the enthusiasm of British crowds. There were so many people on the side of the road – I really missed that in the last couple of years because of COVID.”
Six riders were part of the day’s breakaway heading up the road soon after the start from Stonehaven as the race headed through packed crowds on the Category One ŠKODA King of the Mountains climb of Cairn o’Mount head by Stage Two winner Robin Carpenter (Rally Cycling) with Will Bjergfelt one of the keenest of the breakaway riders to get away at the start.
With several teams eyeing either the stage win or the bonus seconds on Aberdeen’s beach front Esplanade however the break was never going to be allowed the freedom to succeed. Ultimately it was Carpenter and Irish champion Ben Healy (TRINITY Racing) that survived the longest from the breakaway, before being caught on the outskirts of Aberdeen setting up the expected sprint finish.
A last ditch effort by Alex Dowsett (Israel Start-Up Nation) who was let go by Greipel off the front came to nothing as a strong tailwind swept the peloton along the Esplanade. Alaphilippe led out the sprint for Mark Cavendish (Deceuninck – Quick-Step) before André Greipel (Israel Start-Up Nation) hit the front, with van Aert escaping from a sprinters box to power past them both to take the stage and overall victory.
Hayter came in eleventh to lose his AJ Bell leader’s jersey, his worst finish of the week, but kept the Sportsbreaks.com Points jersey. Second overall meant he was the highest place British rider ahead of Mark Donovan (Team DSM), who finished ninth overall, and James Shaw (Ribble Weldtite Pro Cycling), in fourteenth. Speaking after the race Ethan Hayter said; “The race has exceeded expectations for me, and I think a lot of people as well, so I couldn’t have asked for any better really. Well I could have, if Van Aert didn’t win, but other than that!”
“We were concerned that it would all kick off on Cairn o’Mount, but in the end we just rode up it because there was a big headwind. It was funny – we rode up the climb all next to each other and I thought it was quite cool and fun at the same time. We were kind of keeping an eye on each other! It was quite controlled, so it was quite an easy day as things go.”
Fellow Brit Jacob Scott (Canyon dhb SunGod) completed a remarkable week having held both the ŠKODA King of the Mountains and Eisberg Sprints jerseys since Stage One in Bodmin, and was rewarded by his efforts by being presented with the Overall Combativity Award for the race in Aberdeen.
The AJ Bell Tour of Britain will return to Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire in September 2022 for the opening stage of next year’s race as a part of Scotland’s continuing commitment to hosting world-class racing ahead of the 2023 UCI Cycling Worlds in the country. The Tour of Britain in 2022 is expected to finish on the Isle of Wight.
… results are after the advert below …
STAGE 8
1. Wout Van Aert Jumbo-Visma 04:07:56
2. André Greipel Israel Start-Up Nation
3. Mark Cavendish Deceuninck-Quick Step
4. Colin Joyce Rally Cycling
5. Max Kanter Team DSM
6. Rory Townsend Canyon DHB Sungod
7. Matthew Gibson Ribble Weldtite Pro Cycling
8. Ollie Peckover SwiftCarbon Pro Cycling
9. Matthew Bostock Canyon DHB Sungod
10. Gabriel Cullaigh Movistar Team
11. Ethan Hayter INEOS Grenadiers
12. Rhys Britton Great Britain
13. David González Caja Rural-Seguros RGA
14. Tom Mazzone Saint Piran
15. Alex Peters SwiftCarbon Pro Cycling
16. Carlos Barbero Team Qhubeka NextHash
17. Daniel McLay Arkéa-Samsic
18. Thomas Mein Canyon DHB Sungod
19. Ryan Christensen Canyon DHB Sungod
20. Nickolas Zukowsky Rally Cycling
21. Luke Lamperti Trinity Racing
22. Silvan Dillier Alpecin-Fenix
23. Carlos Rodriguez INEOS Grenadiers
24. Jon Barrenetxea Caja Rural-Seguros RGA
25. Michal Paluta Global 6 Cycling
26. Max Rushby Great Britain
27. Mikkel Honore Deceuninck-Quick Step
28. James Shaw Ribble Weldtite Pro Cycling
29. Connor Swift Arkéa-Samsic
30. Julian Alaphilippe Deceuninck-Quick Step
31. Oliver Stockwell Great Britain
32. Lukasz Owsian Arkéa-Samsic
33. Leon Mazzone Saint Piran
34. Tim Naberman Team DSM
35. Michael Woods Israel Start-Up Nation
36. Kristian Sbaragli Alpecin-Fenix
37. Jacob Scott Canyon DHB Sungod
38. Maxime Bouet Arkéa-Samsic
39. Sergio Martin Caja Rural-Seguros RGA
40. Mark Donovan Team DSM
41. Matteo Jorgenson Movistar Team
42. Max Walker Trinity Racing
43. Gavin Mannion Rally Cycling
44. Ben Tulett Alpecin-Fenix
45. Xandro Meurisse Alpecin-Fenix
46. Robert Donaldson Great Britain
47. Max Stedman Canyon DHB Sungod
48. Simon Wilson Ribble Weldtite Pro Cycling
49. Simon Clarke Team Qhubeka NextHash
50. Alexandar Richardson Alpecin-Fenix
51. Owain Doull INEOS Grenadiers
52. Gonzalo Serrano Movistar Team
53. William Bjergfelt SwiftCarbon Pro Cycling
54. Reto Hollenstein Israel Start-Up Nation
55. James Mitri Global 6 Cycling
56. Yves Lampaert Deceuninck-Quick Step
57. Daniel Martin Israel Start-Up Nation
58. Nicolas Roche Team DSM
59. Romain Combaud Team DSM
60. Bradley Symonds Saint Piran
61. Robin Carpenter Rally Cycling
62. Joey Rosskopf Rally Cycling
63. Michal Kwiatkowski INEOS Grenadiers
64. Josu Etxeberria Caja Rural-Seguros RGA
65. Nicolas Sessler Global 6 Cycling
66. Gruff Lewis Ribble Weldtite Pro Cycling
67. Nicholas Dlamini Team Qhubeka NextHash
68. Rohan Dennis INEOS Grenadiers
69. Hans Becking Global 6 Cycling
70. Richie Porte INEOS Grenadiers
71. Christopher Blevins Trinity Racing
72. William Tidball Great Britain
73. Oliver Maxwell Saint Piran @ 14
74. Jimmy Janssens Alpecin-Fenix @ 19
75. Joel Nicolau Caja Rural-Seguros RGA @ 19
76. Christopher Latham SwiftCarbon Pro Cycling @ 27
77. Davide Ballerini Deceuninck-Quick Step @ 52
78. Mauro Schmid Team Qhubeka NextHash @ 01:11
79. Alex Dowsett Israel Start-Up Nation @ 01:21
80. Pascal Eenkhoorn Jumbo-Visma @ 01:59
81. Tim Declercq Deceuninck-Quick Step @ 01:59
82. Dario Cataldo Movistar Team @ 01:59
83. Marc Soler Movistar Team @ 01:59
84. Jokin Murguialday Elorza Caja Rural-Seguros RGA @ 02:18
85. Mason Hollyman Israel Start-Up Nation @ 02:23
86. Ben Healy Trinity Racing @ 02:23
87. Thomas Gloag Trinity Racing @ 02:23
88. Gijs Leemreize Jumbo-Visma @ 02:23
89. Kyle Murphy Rally Cycling @ 03:16
90. Steve Lampier Saint Piran @ 03:26
91. George Bennett Jumbo-Visma @ 03:26
92. Ross Lamb SwiftCarbon Pro Cycling @ 05:23
93. Ross Holland Saint Piran @ 05:23
94. Sean Bennett Team Qhubeka NextHash @ 05:28
FINAL OVERALL
1. Wout Van Aert Jumbo-Visma 31:42:22
2. Ethan Hayter INEOS Grenadiers @ 06
3. Julian Alaphilippe Deceuninck-Quick Step @ 27
4. Mikkel Honore Deceuninck-Quick Step @ 41
5. Michael Woods Israel Start-Up Nation @ 01:00
6. Rohan Dennis INEOS Grenadiers @ 01:14
7. Daniel Martin Israel Start-Up Nation @ 01:16
8. Kristian Sbaragli Alpecin-Fenix @ 01:43
9. Mark Donovan Team DSM @ 02:04
10. Carlos Rodriguez INEOS Grenadiers @ 02:07
11. Gonzalo Serrano Movistar Team @ 02:08
12. Xandro Meurisse Alpecin-Fenix @ 02:08
13. Nicolas Roche Team DSM @ 02:08
14. James Shaw Ribble Weldtite Pro Cycling @ 02:16
15. Maxime Bouet Arkéa-Samsic @ 02:33
16. Connor Swift Arkéa-Samsic @ 02:42
17. Gavin Mannion Rally Cycling @ 02:58
18. Simon Clarke Team Qhubeka NextHash @ 03:07
19. Matteo Jorgenson Movistar Team @ 03:12
20. Lukasz Owsian Arkéa-Samsic @ 03:37
21. Alex Peters SwiftCarbon Pro Cycling @ 03:53
22. Robin Carpenter Rally Cycling @ 03:55
23. Joel Nicolau Caja Rural-Seguros RGA @ 04:07
24. Yves Lampaert Deceuninck-Quick Step @ 04:22
25. Max Stedman Canyon DHB Sungod @ 04:23
26. Silvan Dillier Alpecin-Fenix @ 04:33
27. Sergio Martin Caja Rural-Seguros RGA @ 04:44
28. Michal Paluta Global 6 Cycling @ 07:47
29. Michal Kwiatkowski INEOS Grenadiers @ 08:09
30. Pascal Eenkhoorn Jumbo-Visma @ 08:28
31. Matthew Gibson Ribble Weldtite Pro Cycling @ 09:24
32. Mauro Schmid Team Qhubeka NextHash @ 09:42
33. Colin Joyce Rally Cycling @ 09:43
34. Oliver Stockwell Great Britain @ 10:28
35. Ryan Christensen Canyon DHB Sungod @ 10:34
36. Carlos Barbero Team Qhubeka NextHash @ 10:40
37. Josu Etxeberria Caja Rural-Seguros RGA @ 11:12
38. James Mitri Global 6 Cycling @ 11:38
39. Robert Donaldson Great Britain @ 11:47
40. Alexandar Richardson Alpecin-Fenix @ 11:59
41. Ben Tulett Alpecin-Fenix @ 12:25
42. George Bennett Jumbo-Visma @ 13:19
43. Tim Declercq Deceuninck-Quick Step @ 13:25
44. Steve Lampier Saint Piran @ 13:38
45. Max Walker Trinity Racing @ 14:57
46. Reto Hollenstein Israel Start-Up Nation @ 15:24
47. Nickolas Zukowsky Rally Cycling @ 15:48
48. Thomas Gloag Trinity Racing @ 17:43
49. Joey Rosskopf Rally Cycling @ 17:43
50. Owain Doull INEOS Grenadiers @ 19:38
51. Rory Townsend Canyon DHB Sungod @ 20:11
52. Romain Combaud Team DSM @ 20:53
53. Davide Ballerini Deceuninck-Quick Step @ 21:09
54. Dario Cataldo Movistar Team @ 21:13
55. Richie Porte INEOS Grenadiers @ 21:24
56. Sean Bennett Team Qhubeka NextHash @ 22:33
57. Gijs Leemreize Jumbo-Visma @ 24:13
58. Christopher Blevins Trinity Racing @ 24:29
59. David González Caja Rural-Seguros RGA @ 24:48
60. Ben Healy Trinity Racing @ 25:47
61. Alex Dowsett Israel Start-Up Nation @ 26:23
62. Marc Soler Movistar Team @ 27:34
63. Thomas Mein Canyon DHB Sungod @ 27:35
64. Mason Hollyman Israel Start-Up Nation @ 27:51
65. Max Kanter Team DSM @ 28:11
66. Nicholas Dlamini Team Qhubeka NextHash @ 32:40
67. Luke Lamperti Trinity Racing @ 32:51
68. Mark Cavendish Deceuninck-Quick Step @ 33:27
69. Kyle Murphy Rally Cycling @ 34:14
70. Gruff Lewis Ribble Weldtite Pro Cycling @ 34:20
71. Jimmy Janssens Alpecin-Fenix @ 34:38
72. Leon Mazzone Saint Piran @ 36:39
73. Jacob Scott Canyon DHB Sungod @ 36:46
74. Jon Barrenetxea Caja Rural-Seguros RGA @ 38:38
75. Tim Naberman Team DSM @ 39:41
76. Rhys Britton Great Britain @ 39:56
77. André Greipel Israel Start-Up Nation @ 41:23
78. Nicolas Sessler Global 6 Cycling @ 47:19
79. Hans Becking Global 6 Cycling @ 47:26
80. Matthew Bostock Canyon DHB Sungod @ 50:05
81. Daniel McLay Arkéa-Samsic @ 51:07
82. Jokin Murguialday Elorza Caja Rural-Seguros RGA @ 55:16
83. Gabriel Cullaigh Movistar Team @ 56:13
84. Bradley Symonds Saint Piran @ 01:02:44
85. Ollie Peckover SwiftCarbon Pro Cycling @ 01:03:26
86. Simon Wilson Ribble Weldtite Pro Cycling @ 01:07:23
87. Christopher Latham SwiftCarbon Pro Cycling @ 01:11:42
88. William Tidball Great Britain @ 01:15:25
89. William Bjergfelt SwiftCarbon Pro Cycling @ 01:18:57
90. Oliver Maxwell Saint Piran @ 01:20:31
91. Tom Mazzone Saint Piran @ 01:27:38
92. Max Rushby Great Britain @ 01:28:57
93. Ross Lamb SwiftCarbon Pro Cycling @ 01:29:42
94. Ross Holland Saint Piran @ 01:50:01
POINTS
1. Ethan Hayter INEOS Grenadiers 81
2. Wout Van Aert Jumbo-Visma 69
3. Julian Alaphilippe Deceuninck-Quick Step 58
4. Gonzalo Serrano Movistar Team 35
5. Kristian Sbaragli Alpecin-Fenix 34
6. Michael Woods Israel Start-Up Nation 33
7. Mikkel Honore Deceuninck-Quick Step 32
8. Rory Townsend Canyon DHB Sungod 31
9. Max Kanter Team DSM 31
10. Mark Cavendish Deceuninck-Quick Step 27
KING OF THE MOUNTAINS
1. Jacob Scott Canyon DHB Sungod 66
2. Nicolas Sessler Global 6 Cycling 32
3. Rory Townsend Canyon DHB Sungod 30
4. Robin Carpenter Rally Cycling 29
5. Tim Declercq Deceuninck-Quick Step 24
6. George Bennett Jumbo-Visma 24
7. Jokin Murguialday Elorza Caja Rural-Seguros RGA 20
8. Colin Joyce Rally Cycling 19
9. Jimmy Janssens Alpecin-Fenix 19
10. Daniel McLay Arkéa-Samsic 18
SPRINTS
1. Jacob Scott Canyon DHB Sungod 26
2. Robin Carpenter Rally Cycling 14
3. Rory Townsend Canyon DHB Sungod 9
4. Michal Paluta Global 6 Cycling 6
5. Leon Mazzone Saint Piran 6
6. Pascal Eenkhoorn Jumbo-Visma 4
7. Thomas Gloag Trinity Racing 4
8. Yves Lampaert Deceuninck-Quick Step 4
9. George Bennett Jumbo-Visma 4
10. Max Walker Trinity Racing 4
11. Nicolas Sessler Global 6 Cycling 4
TEAM
1. Deceuninck-Quick Step 94:28:34
2. INEOS Grenadiers @ 23
3. Team DSM @ 03:23
4. Arkéa-Samsic @ 03:44
5. Alpecin-Fenix @ 03:52
6. Israel Start-Up Nation @ 07:58
7. Team Qhubeka NextHash @ 08:49
8. Caja Rural-Seguros RGA @
9. Rally Cycling @ 11:47
10. Jumbo-Visma @ 12:23
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